No Good to Me Dead
by OnionDipshit
Summary: In the dirtiest corner of the galaxy, Splugorra Snell, Jabba the Hutt's lesser known cousin, is collecting famous humanoids for his private zoo. Jumping at the chance to be rid of the new Supreme Leader, General Hux hires a feisty young bounty hunter, Domino Fett, to capture Kylo Ren and sweep him under the rug for good. However, in this galaxy, nothing ever seems to go as planned.
1. BLACK

One of the unspoken rules on the ship was that an elevator, if he wanted it, belonged to the Supreme Leader. It didn't matter if you were carrying important documents, were running late, or were bleeding to death; if you saw that **black** figure coming down the hall, you had to get the hell out of the way. And it wasn't so much of an inconvenience to these people as it was a gentle reminder. Keeping your head attached to your shoulders had proven to be somewhat important when it came to staying alive; you'd be surprised how many people forgot that.

The Supreme Leader was aware of this particular lapse in judgement, and decided to help them out. It was so kind of him to wear such loud boots everywhere he went. Their pounding reverberations kept everyone on their toes, awake and anxious; conscious of the grip they had on their lives and on their heads. His footsteps were like a warning shot, and like the deer of the field, the men and women of the ship would scatter, grateful for the choice they'd been given.

Those footsteps were coming again, towards the elevator. The doors were just about to close, and inside were three or four men, talking to themselves. However, as soon as the dreaded sound was in range, one of them perked up their head, like a stag, and listened. The men all paused mid sentence. Bravely, the first to hear the sound peeked around the corner to try and catch a glimpse of him. When he saw the Supreme Leader marching towards them, he cleared his throat and motioned with his head for the others to follow him out of the elevator. All of them give up their spot readily and quickly pressed the button for the one beside it, saluting nervously as they did so.

Kylo Ren showed no emotion whatsoever, not bothering even to look at them. He simply entered the elevator and watched as the door slid shut. The tense scene was over. That is, until he realized that not everyone had gotten the hint.

Someone had been bold enough to stay.

In the shadowy back corner stood a woman in a bright red jumpsuit, equipped with thin armor padding, a heavy laden utility belt, and boots that were obviously hiding a large knife on her right leg. Her arms were crossed coolly, her side leaning into the wall. From underneath her long black lashes, she looked at him inquisitively for a moment, but as soon as the elevator started shooting up into the ship, she looked away, staring straight ahead.

Kylo Ren couldn't help but notice the reconfigured blaster attached to her slouched hip; it was the same red color as her jumpsuit. The shiny, patent leather of the outfit clung to her a little too well, causing Ren's eyes to linger a bit longer than he'd intended. For a moment he considered confronting her, but for some reason he decided to leave well enough alone. He wasn't in the mood for a brawl. And besides, she didn't seem to want that kind of attention from him anyway. She was grinning coyly, her red lips spreading into a rather pleasing line. Ren shifted his weight and crossed his arms as well, matching hers.

The trip to the bridge seemed to be taking longer than usual, and Ren found himself feeling a bit awkward, waiting for someone to speak and break the forced silence. Apparently, he wasn't the only one who was thinking it, either, and not long after the thought crossed his mind the woman cooed, "Don't worry, this is my stop."

The elevator came to a halt and Ren blinked, not noticing that another floor number had been punched before his. He watched as the red woman sauntered through the doors, running a hand through her straight bobbed hair. Her short tresses were just as black as the design on the back of her jumpsuit; a Mandalorian horned skull.

 _So she is a bounty hunter,_ he thought to himself, recalling the stories of the man who'd once kidnapped his own father. _Boba Fett wore that patch._

Before the doors closed again the woman waved a hand and said, "Later."

For some reason, Kylo Ren felt like he should take her goodbye very literally. He would see her again.

* * *

The redheaded General Hux looked at himself in the reflective surface of the table in front of him, making sure that each and every strand of his hair was in place. His pinched lips loosened a bit with the ease of knowing that the new hair gel he'd tried that morning had worked. He remembered the phrase on the bottle reading something like, _for a serious hold and a sculpted look._ Hux smiled to himself briefly at being bold enough to try a new product and having it actually pay off, but he quickly returned to his natural, weaselly state. He frowned and glared at the door, waiting for the bounty hunter to arrive.

In the pit of his stomach was a bundle of nerves, which had been there ever since he and the four other men in the room had decided to start the coup three days ago. Just after the battle on Crait, Hux hadn't been the only person who was terrified of their new, self-appointed Supreme Leader. Kylo Ren was a strange zealot with a temper that could turn in the bat of an eye. He couldn't be trusted with 187 million people spread across multiple star systems.

Hux's frown intensified at the thought of him throwing him up against walls and strangling him like a hen. He'd never been so embarrassed, so humiliated. That day on Crait, as he tended to his enormous bruise, he vowed to remove Kylo Ren, no matter what the cost.

That's why Hux had hired a bounty hunter to do the job for him! Being a conniving general who only looks out for himself was a full-time job; it's not like he had the time to kill the man on his own! All that blood and guts and grime were too much to deal with, let alone clean up. Plus his reputation would remain spotless. _Some crazy man killed him,_ he thought to himself, grinning once more, _such a shame, really, but I suppose I'll have to take up his duties from now on. All hail me, right?_

The door to the conference room opened swiftly, causing him to snap out of his ambitious haze. It was the bounty hunter, and she was smiling ear to ear.

"Hello, boys," she beamed, stepping into the room, "are we ready to stand up to the man?"

General Hux's eyes trailed up and down her body, making him blush once he realized what he'd done. Clearing his throat, he replied, "You're Miss Fett, then?"

"None other," she replied, "Domino Fett, at your service. And I suppose you're General Hux?"

"Quite," he spat.

The other men in the room were confused by her, obviously having imagined someone much larger. They wondered to themselves whether or not she would be able to handle Kylo Ren, and quietly began to question Hux's choice in assassins.

Domino walked up to the table they were seated at and stood over them, reaching to her utility belt and detaching a money transfer chip. Holding it out to General Hux, she asked, "Did Splugorra make the deal clear enough? He's prepared to give you half of the credits now and the other 600,000 once I've brought him to Rattatak." Just as Hux took the device from her hand and began scanning his data card, she added, "And you're to give me 15,000 for taking him off your hands."

At this, Hux let out a single chuckle and scoffed, " _15,000?_ No, the deal was five."

Domino forced a smile and pressed a little button on her watch, cuing the start of a recording of Hux's voice saying, " _and the bounty hunter will be given 15,000 in payment, yes, of course._ " She pressed the button again and turned her hand out in a _gimme_ motion.

Hux rolled his eyes and ran his card again, typing in the five digit number she wanted. The other men looked at him pointedly. When he was finished making the transfer, he held onto the chip, annoying Domino.

"Were _we_ clear on the deal?" asked Hux, his face failing to hide his irritation. "We want him gone; erased. I don't want to see or hear anything about him ever again, like he never existed in the first place. Kill him if you want. We don't care what you do with him as long as our wishes are met."

Domino's eyes narrowed, switching her catlike gaze between him and her money chip. Like an addict missing her fix, she could feel herself start to squirm at its absence. Holding out her hand, she said, "He's no good to me dead. Splugorra doesn't care much for taxidermy- he wants him alive for his human zoo." When Hux continued to withhold the funds, she elaborated, saying, "See, he keeps them in glass enclosures like a living hall of fame. He collects people he finds interesting and keeps them for decoration. They usually die within a year, though; he forgets to feed them a lot."

Hux and the other men were obviously perplexed by the notion, finding the hobbies of the Hutts all rather strange. However, anything would be better than keeping Kylo Ren in power. Through exchanged glances and nods, the men came to a consensus and agreed that this would work for them, and not long after Hux returned her money chip. She yanked it out of his hand gratefully.

"Thanks, boys," she beamed, returning the chip to the pocket it came from. "Now, where will I find my precious bounty head?"

"His chambers are on the 34th floor towards the end of hall B," informed Hux, leaning in on his forearms. "You'll recognize the door for all of the dents and scratches on it. His personal code to access the room is 1234."

Domino scoffed, finding it humorous that a man so feared would use such a predictable code. " _Seriously?_ " she asked.

Hux narrowed his eyes at her swiftness to dismiss him and spat, "Yes. You can do things like that when people are frightened of you."

* * *

When Ren was notified that someone had utilized his access code, he knew something was wrong. He'd left the command deck immediately and hurried towards his chambers, the fierceness in his face throwing people off as he passed. They were quick to get out of his way, as slowly but surely the size of the hallways changed, from public to personal. The hallways to the cabins were wide enough for one person to walk through, but for a man as large as Ren, he still had to squeeze by. He'd always found it embarrassing to have to crouch down just to get into his room; maybe that's why he'd kicked his door so much. Sometimes, like then, he wished that he hadn't been so angry with it in the past, for now it took roughly two minutes to get it to slide open.

With a screech and a few sparks from metal grinding against metal, the door to his cavern-like chambers opened wide enough for him to lurch through. Once he was in, he immediately began to scan the room, searching for whoever might have made themselves at home. It was dark; too dark to make anything out. Usually he enjoyed living in the shadows, but admittedly he hadn't become nocturnal just yet; echolocation wasn't on his list of skills. After a moment of stumbling around in the dark, he switched on the light, exposing the perpetrator.

There, standing just a few feet away, was the woman in the bright red jumpsuit, her blaster aimed directly at him. Right then it clicked, and both of them at the same time exclaimed, " _You!_ "

Not wasting any time, Domino fired at him, only to have him grab the staticky blue bolt with the force powers she'd heard so much about. The blast buzzed in between them for a moment like captured lightning before Ren was able to turn it around, narrowly missing her left arm. Domino ran towards an armchair, used it as a platform to jump from, and reached out for his neck to try and tackle him to the ground.

Before she could grab him Ren slammed her into the floor with his arm, like squashing a nat. She landed sharply on her side with a thud, the air in her lungs knocked out of her. He was much stronger than she'd been expecting, and for a split second she got scared. However, she could see the pile of money waiting for her if she succeeded and pushed that fear aside. As she struggled to get everything back into frame, he came towards her. _He's underestimating me,_ she thought to herself, grinning. As soon as Ren grabbed her ankle she pulled herself up and straddled his front. With one arm she started choking him in a deadly embrace, holding onto his waist with her legs. His face was right against hers, his spit flying into her hair as he fought to breathe. The sharp heels of her boots pierced themselves into his upper thighs with how tightly she was constricting him. Knowing this hold wouldn't last for long, Domino managed to press a button on her watch, releasing four little metal balls that rolled off of her belt and onto his body, burying themselves in his clothes. Feeling the tiny shocker bugs attach themselves to his tunic, Ren picked up the pace.

Ren let out a grunt as he picked at her arm with his gloved hands, quickly cursing the slippery texture of her skin-tight garb and moving towards the wall to smash himself free. Walking into the wall, he slammed her into it repeatedly, causing her to let out a pained scream when he hit her already bruised side. Unable to keep it up, she let go of him and fell to the floor, catching her breath. Her back felt like it was about to split open, but she ignored it, rising to her feet just as Kylo Ren came in with a swift punch. She ducked just in time, falling back onto the floor. He ended up punching the metal wall above her and she could hear his knuckles popping with the force of it. Her eyes were wide at the realization of his strength. As he tugged himself out of the wall, she stood up and ran towards the little desk he had beside his bed, grabbing a paperweight and bringing it down on his shoulder just right.

He collapsed to his knees, the hit causing his arm to be knocked out of socket. " _Fuck!_ " he roared, grabbing the aching thing. For a second Domino thought that this might have been enough, but when he started rising to his feet once more she went ahead and hit the button on her watch again. The shocker bugs kicked in, electrocuting him and bringing him to the ground with a boom.

She sat on his chest to hold him down, but he was quick to grab her. She knew that it was time to use the tranquilizer. With her on top of him, a bruising grip on her wrist, Domino used her foot to pin down his other arm as she hurriedly undid a pocket on her utility belt. Almost dropping it, she pulled out what looked like a dart and grasped it tightly in her fist.

"Hold... _still!_ " she grimaced, struggling to get to his neck. Finally, after she put all of her strength behind it, she plunged the pointed end of the dart into the flesh of his neck, right behind his ear. After this was done, she allowed herself to be thrown off of him, and she crawled over to the wall to rest.

Furious, Kylo Ren rose to his feet and grabbed the dart, yanking it out of his neck and examining it in his hand. It was solid black and shaped like an off-kilter diamond, its tip dipped in a strange, green colored liquid. Breathing hard, he crushed it and threw the pieces at her, feeling his heart race nervously with the idea of being injected with an unknown fluid.

"What is this?" he croaked, his voice caught between fear and anger. He pointed at her accusingly and asked, "Who sent you?"

Panting, Domino smiled a bit and said, "I'd tell you if someone hadn't paid me not to."

Ren repeated himself, determined to get an answer. " _What is this?_ What did you just-"

"It's a tranquilizer," she explained, attempting to stand up. "Don't worry, you're not going to die. You'll just be paralyzed for a bit until I can get you to my client."

Ren scoffed and shook his head, unsure of what to do as he could slowly feel himself losing control of his limbs. He wanted to choke her, to break her neck, but as much as he wanted to summon the Force within him, he couldn't. He couldn't feel anything.

"Stupid bitch," he sputtered, leaning on his desk for support.

Domino laughed, pressing against her split side as she did so. "No wonder they want rid of you," she purred, her voice smooth. "Even your insults need work."

Before he could retort, he fell over with a heavy thud, completely limp. His head was the only thing that could move. He angled himself to look up at her and fumed, puffs of air passing violently through his nose.

Slowly, she walked over to him, pushing him onto his back with her foot. "Stars, you're going to be a pain in the ass to move. How tall _are_ you, anyway? _Six-five?_ " She shook her head and laughed, "You're _massive!_ And I bet you're popular with the ladies if that shoe size counts for anything."

"Shut up," he mumbled, having trouble with his words.

Straightening up, Domino looked at her watch and typed in a number, trying to reach someone. A voice picked up at the other end, but they were obviously uneasy about taking her call. She told them, "I'll be needing that gurney now. He's down for the count."

"Of course," it said.

Kylo Ren felt something in him shift. The anger that he'd been feeling towards this woman now shifted onto someone else, someone much more familiar.

"They'll be down with it shortly," said the voice, thin and nasally. "Thank you again, Miss Fett."

It was Hux. Hux had hired a bounty hunter to get rid of him.

" _Coward!_ " shouted Ren, spitting with fury, "Come down here and face me! I'll fucking end you, you rat! Traitor, get down here and fight me! The next time I see you I'll make you bleed, you hear me?"

Wanting to make himself clear, Ren looked up at Domino and ordered, "Tell that weasel that I'm going to slit his throat the next time I lay eyes on him!"

Hux had heard his incomprehensible screams on his end of the line and asked Domino nervously to repeat what he'd just said. Domino stared blankly into her wrist and said calmly, "He says that he's really looking forward to his vacation on Rattatak and that he'll be sure to buy souvenirs!"

"That's not what I said!" Growled Ren, "I said that I'm going to kill you, you little—"

"—Yes, he says that he'll be sure to send a postcard—"

"—I'll rip out your eyes and piss in your skull, you piece of—"

" _Alright, bye-bye now!_ "

* * *

By the time that Kylo Ren had been transported to the bounty hunter's ship, the body bag he'd been hidden in had made his eyes dilate in the darkness of it, leaving him practically blinded when the red woman unzipped it. He couldn't tell if it was the tranquilizer taking affect on him or what, but it looked like an obese child in overalls was standing over him and chewing gum. However, when he started talking, he knew that it wasn't a hallucination.

"His ears are really big," said the chubby boy, smacking his gum, "and he has cool hair. Are you sure he's our guy?"

"Yeah, it's him," answered Domino, kicking off her boots. She teased, "you should know better than anyone not to judge a candy by its wrapper, Lubb."

Lubb had the most intense look of confusion on his face that Kylo Ren had ever seen. With the utmost sincerity in his young voice, he asked, "But doesn't their leader wear a bathrobe?"

Domino replied, "Well, _this_ guy _killed_ bathrobe guy, so now he's their leader— _was_ their leader, sorry." She walked back over to Kylo Ren, returning to his line of sight. She'd put her hair up into two tight buns at the top of her head, exposing earrings that looked like a pair of dice. Leaning down, she grabbed his shoulders and said, "Come on, let's prop you up somewhere."

Kylo frowned as the strange duo worked together to move him out of the bag and over to a chair where rope was already waiting for him. Lubb proved to be utterly useless and just ended up carrying his feet while Domino did the rest, dragging him awkwardly by the armpits. He could feel her push the breath from her nose forcefully into the back of his head as she hauled the entirety of his weight. They put him in a leather chair that was the same red as her jumpsuit, a common theme throughout the ship. Finally, he was situated to their liking, and Domino left him for Lubb to tie up.

Examining his surroundings, Ren couldn't help but notice the screens mounted to the cockpit showing multiple races and blackjack game portals. From her dedicated viewing he presumed that the woman was an active gambler, but maybe not a very good one. Bright red numbers flashed in the negatives on several screens, a sign that she was most certainly in debt. It was obvious that what money she had she didn't spend on the ship. Though it might have been luxurious in its day, the ship had definitely gone through some wear and tear (probably from multiple, multiple owners). The seats were worn, the couch nearby had a hole in it the size of a womp rat, and there were dozens of candy wrappers lazily stuffed in their trash compactor. There was graffiti on the walls talking about which gang stole it from who, but on top of all of it was an enormous mandalorian skull; the girl was making a statement.

In one corner of the ship Kylo could hear music playing, but it wasn't anything he was familiar with. He was never one for hip hop, but that seemed to be all that she and the boy listened to. As Lubb tied him to the chair, he danced a little bit to the bassy song in the background and grinned, producing dimples in the sides of his round cheeks. Kylo noticed that he was jingling with tools and devices, the pockets of his green overalls stuffed to the brim with them. On his forehead were a pair of goggles, and if you looked closely enough you could see red rings around his eyes from wearing them too tightly. He was obviously the ship's engineer, and he was obviously the one eating all of the candy. A giant streak of chocolate stretched across his cheek from where he had tried (and failed) to wipe it away.

"Do you really have superpowers?" asked Lubb as he worked on tying the final knot. His brown eyes focused on Ren's intently, obviously interested in anything that he might have to say.

Kylo looked at him, annoyed. He tried to remain quiet so that the kid would eventually lose interest, but he just kept staring and staring at him. Finally he gave in and grumbled, " _Sure._ "

"WOW, you DO?" asked Lubb, his round face lighting up. The kid didn't notice the irritation in the man's face as he continued to bombard him with questions. "Can you fly? Can you lift heavy things? Can you eat a lot of things and not feel sick afterwards? Do you eat meat? Do you know other people with superpowers? Do you look young but you're actually really old? Do you have a good sense of balance? I can do a cartwheel. Can you read my mind? Oh, wait, if you can I don't think I want to know, that's just embarrassing. Do you have a lightsaber? Have you ever killed anyone on accident with it? It's alright, you can tell me, I won't tell anyone."

Ren took advantage of the boy pausing to breathe and hissed, "No, I haven't, but I have a feeling that my perfect record might go out the window very soon."

Lubb got the message and backed off. "Sorry," he mumbled, losing the sparkle in his eye. He started shuffling through his pockets for something, and when he found it immediately changed the subject. "Dom, did they pay you?"

The woman flipped around from tampering with the controls and walked towards him, pulling out a money chip from her utility belt. "500 credits, as promised," she said, swiping the boy's card. The chip lit up and beeped when it was done, emitting a _ka-ching_ sound. "Try not to spend it all on busted droid parts this time, ok?"

Lubb grinned ear to ear and nodded eagerly, running off to his room on the ship. After his door slid shut a strange barrage of noises kicked in, but Kylo Ren didn't dare ask what they were coming from. He looked over at the woman in red who was still standing over him, fiddling with her jumpsuit. After she had unbuttoned a few things and unzipped a few more, Ren realized that she was taking it off completely. He laid his head back against the seat and watched her, irritated, but not enough to look away.

The woman stripped, peeling off the hip-hugging latex like a second skin and exposing a black bra and panties, as well as a massive purple bruise on her back. Noticing how his eyes went right to where she was hurting, she asked, "That bad, huh?"

Kylo Ren looked away then, remembering their fight. Although his body was numb, he could still feel a dull pain coming from his shoulder, a side-effect of being slugged with a solid metal paperweight. He still couldn't believe Hux had put a bounty out on him. Without even thinking, he rolled his eyes for the twentieth time that day.

Tossing the bright red outfit onto a chair beside him, she grabbed a grey sweatshirt and threw it on, the shirt baggy enough to cover all the important bits. "If I'd known that you were that big bastard from the elevator I would have worn something else," she told him, rubbing her bruised side. "Oh well, at least my ass looked good while I was beating yours."

Ren's eyes shot to hers with disdain. "You didn't know who I was? They paid you to find the Supreme Leader of the First Order and you didn't even bother to find out what I looked like?" He scoffed, "Wasn't it obvious? I wear a cape and people are afraid of me!"

She threw her head back and laughed at his embarrassed fury. Once she had gathered herself again she replied, "You're not the first pretentious asshole in a cape that I've ever met, babydoll, sorry if you thought you had a good thing going." She shook her head in amused disbelief and crossed her arms like she had on the elevator, looking him over with her catlike black eyes.

Ren frowned at the remark, but didn't wish to talk about his outfit any longer than they already had. He glanced over at Lubb's door and then back at her. "The boy called you Dom. Is that your name?"

Grinning, she purred, "My name is Domino Fett. Have you heard of me?"

"So you are a Fett," he noted, "Any relation to Boba?"

"Of course," she conceded, smiling proudly, "He's my grandfather. And before you ask, _yes_ , he's still in The Sarlacc. People don't seem to get the whole _new-definition-of-pain-and-suffering-as-you-are-slowly-digested-over-a-thousand-years_ thing."

Kylo blinked. It was so bizarre to hear a story from his father's misadventures being told by a total stranger. He wondered if she knew about their unique connection, but decided not to press the issue. He had better things to do than talk to bounty hunter scum with gorgeous legs. Frustrated with himself, he looked away and sighed.

Domino made her way to the cockpit and curled up into the pilot's chair. Pressing the communications button, she made contact with the hangar captain and told him that she was ready to leave _Finalizer_. After a few minutes, the locks were taken off of her platform and she was free to steer the craft towards the exit, the men and women of the First Order marching below them, completely unaware that their Supreme Leader had been kidnapped by the woman manning the ship. Within seconds they were gone, floating past the gravitational field and into space without a single protest. Kylo Ren wanted to scream, but he knew it wouldn't do him any good. He couldn't hide the sense of disappointment and abandonment that he felt on his face as he rested his head against the prison that was his chair. He had finally become Supreme Leader, the most powerful man in the galaxy, but it turns out that he couldn't even make it a week.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked, his voice low and defeated.

Domino didn't look at him. She was busy filing her nails back into shape after her scrap with him. After a bit she replied, "I'm taking you to Rattatak, to Splugorra Snell. He seems very interested in you. Paid a hefty price, at least."

Ren got nervous at the thought of someone buying him. He'd thought that Hux was sending him somewhere out of sight to be executed, but if someone had actually _purchased_ him, did that mean he was to be made a slave instead? He tried to think back on what he knew about Rattatak, but the place was so isolated that he couldn't recall anything. No one lived there really, at least nothing sentient. A few random tribes of people looking for freedom from the Order had outposts there, but other than that, nothing really stood out in Ren's mind. He had certainly never heard of Splugorra Snell before. This only made him even more uncomfortable.

"What does he want with me?" he asked. "Who is he?"

"Splugorra is a Hutt drug lord," she sighed, obviously displeased with how her nails were shaping up. "He dabbles in slavery on the side. Except, you won't be doing any labor, believe me. You're there on display. He collects famous people like you and puts them up in a zoo, a Human Zoo. He heard that there was still a living jedi and wanted you for his collection, I guess."

"I'm not a jedi," he mumbled, digesting this new information.

Domino smiled, "Well you have a lightsaber, don't you? And you use," she made a whimsical gesture with her hands, " _the Force_?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then you meet all the requirements of being a jedi," she jibed, giving up on her nails.

Ren narrowed his eyes at her ignorance, but didn't push it. He asked, "Does he really think he can contain me so easily? I'm-"

"Splugorra's men designed the tranquilizer I gave you," explained Domino, holding up an extra dart from her belt, "and it seems to be working just fine."

He looked away, embarrassed of his current paralyzed state.

Domino watched him crumble and lost her smile, feeling a tad empathetic. "I'm sorry," she told him, "It's nothing personal, I just happen to like money. And you don't seem like _that_ bad a guy. You're such a hunk, too. ...What a shame."

Kylo glared at her, hearing the same thing from her that he heard from everyone else. _What a shame. What a waste._ He wanted to disappear.

After a few minutes of silence, Lubb came stumbling back out of his room, obviously excited given the size of his mouth as he screamed, "Dom, there's a Zorko's Big Bite out here! It's just another planet over! Please, can we go? Please!"

"Oh wow! They have one all the way out here?" exclaimed Dom, turning towards the tracking system. After she'd typed in the name of the restaurant, it immediately popped up it was in such close proximity. "Of course we'll go! We deserve some good food after a hard day's work!"

Ren blinked.

They were going through a drive-thru? But what about their bounty? And what about the human zoo? Didn't they need to get there pretty soon?

Noticing the confused look on his face, Lubb asked, "Haven't you ever been to a Zorko's before? They have really good smapp!"

"...No... I've never been to... _Zorko's_ ," replied Ren, ready to go along with anything at this point.

At this, both Lubb and Domino gaped at him in disbelief. Domino shifted course and angled the ship towards the satellite. She said, "Well we're just going to have to change that!"

* * *

"So you want a groat chop with extra smapp, a large Thakatilla, a fried porg with a side of nerf nuggets, a medium yoba shake, a nuna grumbo and a what?" asked the cashier, her microphone making it a bit hard to understand her.

Domino yelled into the receiving end, "A PALP WAFER!"

After a few seconds pause the lady asked, "You want tarsh on the palp wafer?"

"No, thank you!" replied Domino, stepping away from the mic to float over to the anti-gravity door. "Lubb, ask Supreme Beater what he wants!"

Lubb turned to Kylo Ren and asked, "You wanna try a groat chop? Or some nerf nuggets? They're really good with kelp sauce!"

"I don't want anything," answered Ren.

"But it's really good! You need to try it!" spoke Lubb, surprised that anyone could turn down Zorko's.

"I'm not hungry!" insisted Kylo.

"It's really tasty, though!"

"I don't _want_ anything!"

Domino floated up to the door and peered in at them through the window. "What do you want, Mr. Ren?"

Kylo looked her dead in the eye and said, "Nothing!"

" _WHAT?_ " screamed Dom, unable to hear him, or at least pretending that she couldn't. "I can't hear you!"

"NOTHING!" he shouted, practically boiling over, "I don't want anything to eat!"

"...What!?"

"I don't-"

"I can't hear you!"

"I don't want-"

"What did you say?"

"I'LL TAKE THE DAMN NERF NUGGETS!"

"Awesome choice!" said Domino, floating back to complete their order. She paid, and not long after their order shot up through a pipe and into the air lock, floating in brown bags and massive cups. She collected it all and held it tightly against her, floating back towards the door and pressing the right buttons to let her in. Once the gravity hit her she almost dropped all of their food, but Lubb was there to catch it.

Without warning they both tore into it, acting like they hadn't had anything to eat in days. They were like a pack of wild dogs, ripping open the colorful packaging and filling their mouths to the brim with the stuff, a four course meal devoured in under a minute. Disgusted, Ren watched as slowly but surely they'd eaten every last greasy morsel, leaving only his small box of nuggets alone. The smell was surprisingly agreeable and Ren soon found that his stomach was growling.

"Don't worry," smiled Domino as she waled over to him, rubbed the crumbs off of her face with the back of her hand, and pulled up a chair. "I haven't forgotten my happy camper."

He watched her sit down beside him and sighed. "Don't."

"Don't what?" she asked, opening the box. "You can't move your arms, how else are you supposed to eat this?"

He scowled and looked away, sheepish.

"I'm doing you a favor," she said, picking up a nugget. "You might not get the chance to eat again for a long time."

Ren eyed her curiously, trying not to look nervous. The idea of slowly starving to death in a cage wasn't exactly alluring. It wasn't the death he wanted; he was a warrior, not a slave. His situation was the most embarrassing thing he'd ever been through. He was being spoon fed like a baby and couldn't even move his hands. Not having a choice had never felt so real.

"Open your mouth," she whispered, motioning for Lubb to go and pilot the ship.

Sighing, he complied, giving her a death stare as she pushed a nerf nugget into his mouth like putting bullets in a gun. The nugget was perfectly round and deep fried, the meat inside slightly tangy, like citrus. The strange combination made for a pleasing taste, but of course he wasn't going to tell her that. He chewed it up and swallowed, but didn't open his mouth for another one.

Domino wagged her finger at him and scolded, "If you're not going to eat them, then I will." She picked one up and bit it in half. She tried to get him to smile, or at least look her in the eye, but when he didn't she got very upfront with him. Getting out of earshot of Lubb, she whispered to him, "Look, I get that you're feeling knocked down or whatever, but this isn't going to get any easier for you. Splugorra is evil, you understand?"

He didn't respond, unimpressed.

She grabbed his chin and forced him to look at her. "He'll beat that smugness out of you. He'll beat everything out of you that resembles yourself." After a few tense seconds she looked away and dug through the box, pretending like what she'd said didn't bother her. Picking one of them up, she said, "Now hurry up and eat this damn nerf before we get there."

* * *

 **Hey guys! Thanks for checking out my story! This is an idea that I've been playing around with since TLJ came out, and I'm very excited to see what you think of it. This isn't going to be a long piece. The story will be told in four parts; black, red, white, and grey. Be looking out for Red very soon! I've been in such a great place creatively these past few weeks because of a creative writing class that I'm taking for school, so I thought I'd go for it and put another little story out there. Anyway, what do you think of it so far? Please leave a comment for me! Comments make everything so exciting! I get to look forward to reading what you all think, I get to check out your advice, and I get to hear your criticisms! I'm looking forward to all of it! Thanks again for checking out "No Good to Me Dead"! See you soon!**

 **-Molly**

 **P.S. If you are readers who have been following me for a while, thanks so much for sticking with me! I promise I've not stopped working on the final chapter of Diagnosis! Be looking out for it! It may take me a while, but please know that I'm taking my time for the sake of quality! I want to give you something good! Love ya!**


	2. RED

"My dear comrades, citizens of the First Order, protectors of civility and progress; it has fallen to me once again to inform you of a death. A death which has brought a mournful shroud over us once again. The Supreme Leader is dead," said Hux, his pale face painted with a false remorse. As he spoke to the mass of troopers gathered in his midst, he watched the cameras floating around him, projecting his speech to every corner of the galaxy that the First Order touched. "Our great leader was viciously and savagely _murdered_ by one of our own, a traitor, who deserves no lesser punishment than a slow, painful death for depriving us of our dear marshal. As for those who loved him, we must find a way to go on without our most radiant of guiding lights. Our most glorious leader, our victorious hero, our courageous warrior, our _friend_."

"Fucking hell," whispered a general behind him. Hux was certainly laying it on thick. Everyone around him stifled a laugh.

Hux continued, eyes gleaming in the lights of the hangar. "Although we will never know what our noble knight could have done for our people, we know in our heart of hearts that he was a champion. A champion who has entrusted our vast and unquestionable empire to me, Armitage Hux."

Those who were allowed to clapped, filling the hangar with thunderous applause. Hux smiled smugly, unsurprised by their reaction. For years he had been telling himself that the people wanted him as their leader, and now that he had finally filled the position, Hux was feeling incredibly full of himself. Sure, they might have been clapping out of fear, but Hux didn't even consider it; he _knew_ that they adored him. Waving his faithful subjects down like a king on his throne, he smiled and said, "I promise, on the blood and bones of our ancestors, that the First Order, under Supreme Leader General Armitage Hux, will drive its enemies into oblivion! And we shall start by doing what should have been done days ago; we will find and destroy the remaining members of the Resistance and cause their necessary, permanent extinction!"

* * *

Domino mumbled to herself frustratedly. She had been going through her wardrobe for the better part of an hour, stacking on a nearby chair an ever towering pile of incredibly expensive dresses, pants, jumpsuits, handbags, and shoes, all of which were either white, black, or **red**. Kylo Ren had never seen someone with so many clothes, let alone someone who was so skilled in cramming them into such a small space. Many of the pieces, he noticed, still had tags on them, and from across the room he was able to make out the astronomical prices on some of them. Looking at the pile, he estimated roughly 30,000 credits were stacked up in that chair, the price of a good speeder. It made him wonder just how much money the woman had wasted on delusional shopping sprees, sprees which he knew were delusional based on the obvious amount of debt she was in.

Every few minutes someone would call her and ask when their money was coming in or when they could expect her check to clear. She was excellent at coming up with excuses. So far she'd listed a baby shower, a funeral, a broken leg, a fortune teller, and a dead dog as reasons as to why she couldn't pay back their loans. However, loan sharks and lusty men weren't the only people ringing her up. Other gamblers were quick to ask her to join a game once she'd logged on; whether or not it was because she was easy prey, Kylo didn't know. He just knew that she was addicted. She never said no to a game.

Using the seven monitors that were bolted to the cockpit, Domino juggled between placing bets on fathiers, video poker, Corellian sabacc, roulette, craps, bantha rodeo, and blackjack. While she might not have been the best at picking a winning fathier, she did seem to be pretty proficient at the table games, especially sabacc. Watching her manage the cards reminded Kylo Ren of when his father would come home from a contract and spend the night teaching him the game. He'd told him that Sabacc was his favorite game because it was how he'd snagged the Millenium Falcon from Lando Calrissian, who would always get angry with him for bringing it up (which only seemed to happen when the man was around). Han had kept the winning dice and dipped them in gold as a momento, and for years they hung in the cockpit. Ren had grown up watching them dangle in the glow of the stars. When he had seen them again on the floor of the base on Crait, he could feel the anger within him dissolve, like sugar in tea. The memory was too sweet to ruin with something as bitter as rage.

For the past hour or so Ren had sat in silence, pondering things. So much had happened recently, and for the first time in a long time he had the opportunity to meditate on it. As he let his head fall back against the chair, he thought back on the past week like an old war veteran, his heart heavy with the passage of time. _But that was it, wasn't it_. It had only been a _week_ since he'd killed his father, his uncle had been found, the base had exploded, he'd met the girl Rey, he'd struck down the Supreme Leader, and was dethroned. It felt like he'd been stuck in that crazy whirlwind for months rather than days, and now that his short reign was over, he wasn't quite sure how he felt about it. Somehow, the whole thing seemed pointless to him now. Ren thought that he had a plan. He wanted all of it to end and to start over new -a clean slate for both him and the galaxy- but now that the Resistance's numbers had dwindled to less than a shipful, his own generals had overthrown him, Rey had abandoned him, and his father's murder had been proven pointless, he was finding it more than difficult to stay vengeful. In fact, he felt defeated, with no desire to get back up just to get knocked down again. Everything he'd done was so futile. Did any of this matter? What was it all for? What kind of vision had he been fighting for if all he'd gotten out of it was a broken heart and a shattered spirit?

"And that makes twenty-three! Pay up and suck a fat one, Haladeen!"

Ren perked up at Domino's apparent victory, watching the little red numbers go into the blue on her screen. She had evidently won over 50,000 credits.

Jovially she turned her head around to catch a glimpse of Ren's face, pointing at the screen and cheering, "Wowee! See that, kitty cat?"

Before Kylo could respond, the man called Haladeen forced his video stream into fullscreen on her monitor, his red face right against the camera as he screamed, "Yeah, you better believe I saw that, you twit! You were shuffle tracking, I know you were!"

"Says who, wise guy?" she hollered back, obviously offended at being called a cheat. "I don't use shuffle tracking, the programs are too expensive and too easily detected by videoconnect scanners. I might like to gamble, but just with my money, not my neck. Sheesh man, I can't help it if I'm that much better than you, gimme a break."

Haladeen twisted his face up into the camera until only his mouth and nose were visible, his finger pointing at her fiercely beneath his chin. "You little shit, you'd better _watch_ that pretty neck a yours! Or else I might get tired of playing these games with you!"

"Boo-hoo, you don't want to play with me anymore?" she asked, rubbing away fake tears. "But who's going to push me on the swings?"

Beyond annoyed, Haladeen shut off his monitor and disconnected from the session. Domino couldn't help but laugh hysterically at the sore loser whose money was lining her digital pockets. Now giddy with cash, she rose from her seat and shook her head in exaggerated disbelief. "Men are such babies," she declared, applying another layer of red lipstick like it was icing on a cake. She looked at Kylo Ren through the mirror as she finished applying the rest of her makeup. "Sorry, but it's true," she insisted, running mascara over her lashes, "You guys just can't handle it when a girl beats you."

As she spoke, Ren couldn't help but think of Rey, her ferocity utterly destroying him on Starkiller, her eyes electric in the throne room. When he woke up after the battle he'd been so quick to blame her, to want her dead. He'd felt like their connection was a lie, a joke, no matter how important it had once been to him. He'd lashed out at her because of it. Looking back now, he couldn't help but cringe. "You're right," he said, quietly agreeing. "We can't."

Unsure of which nerve exactly she hit, Domino turned around and watched him as she returned her makeup to the sparkly black bag she kept it in. He was a strange man, that's for sure -and if any of the stories she'd heard about him were true- he was a vicious one, too. But in that moment, as he slumped in his chair, black hair covering his eyes, Domino's mind wasn't entirely made up about him just yet. But then again, she'd seen her fair share of murderers, and he was definitely meeting all the requirements. No matter how determined he was to keep his eyes to the floor, she saw that familiar darkness behind them. He'd definitely done things he wasn't proud of.

"I'm going to wear my white fur coat tonight," she proclaimed, changing the subject. "I feel classy and I want the feeling to continue."

Kylo Ren observed her struggle as she yanked said coat from the middle of the stack, causing the pile of clothes to spill over onto the floor. She laid the massive thing back down and proceeded to pull her sweatshirt over her head, leading to a sharp intake of breath. The bruise on her side had darkened into shades of purple, yellow, and green, making her grit her teeth as the skin slowly stretched to free her arms from the shirt sleeves. When the shirt was off and she was left in her underwear again, she stopped for a second to grab her side, rubbing it a bit. This was when Ren noticed something else written on her skin; a massive scar ran in a straight line beneath her ribs, pale from age but still obvious.

Playing dumb, Ren asked, "Did I do that?"

She glanced over at him and realized that he wasn't talking about the bruise. Feeling slightly exposed, Domino slipped into a tight black dress, quickly covering the scar and any trace of the cloud of purple skin. As she zipped herself up, she simply told him, "I was in CoCo Town during the Organ Craze."

Now actually dumb, Ren asked, "The Organ Craze?"

Dom shot him a quizzical look before stepping into her bright red boots, the kind of quizzical look that made it seem like this information was basic knowledge. She didn't seem like she wanted to elaborate, but she did anyway, saying, "About 10 years ago there was a big thing on Coruscant regarding healthy organs; the wealthy always have first pick whenever they need a transplant, which left the average person out in the cold. Basically, crooks like the ones in CoCo Town thought they could get in on the game by offering organs at a cheaper price than the hospitals. They never knocked anyone out for them, though, that was too dirty; the people in my neighborhood needed the money, so of course they were willing to go under the knife. It was all voluntary... Supposedly..."

She trailed off, but Ren wanted to know more. "What did you sell?" he asked, his eyebrows raising. "Your kidney?"

At that, her face hardened and her red lips pursed as she sifted through her jewelry drawer, the question obviously bringing up bad memories. " _I_ didn't sell it," she muttered, trying on rings, "my mother did."

Kylo's jagged brows furrowed as he clarified what she'd said. "Your mother forced you to sell your kidney?"

"And part of my liver," Dom added curtly, deciding on not wearing any jewelry at all but the earrings she already had on. She slung her rings back into the box dramatically. Dom was starting to get irritated with his prying, but she answered him nonetheless. She said flatly, "She needed the money for drugs. She's addicted to Pryodase, so is my dad. So is everyone from CoCo Town."

"Incredible," jibed Ren, "Who would have guessed. A bounty hunter with a troubled past? It seems as though your grandfather has quite the legacy." He smirked at his little sarcastic comment. However, he soon lost that snide smile once Domino plunged a brooch straight into his chest. Even though he'd been paralyzed, he couldn't ignore the sharp, shooting pain that had pierced him. The pin must have been two inches long, for his clothes provided very little protection against what felt like the seemingly endless needle that had been stabbed into his skin. He let out a grunt and shouted, "Shit! What was _that_ for!?"

" _Pompous jackass!_ " she hissed, twisting the gold brooch until the fabric of his tunic twisted as well. "My grandfather doesn't have a son anymore, got it? He has a granddaughter. _I'm_ his legacy, not him! So shut your trap before I stick this in your eye, too! ...And _a troubled past?_ Isn't that just the pot calling the kettle black? You're cute, alright? But not cute enough for me to ignore your glaring insecurities and questionable levels of morality. We're in the same boat, buddy boy, so don't make me poke another hole in it."

Kylo stiffened at her statement, but held his ground, unblinking. She was right. For a second there, he almost felt sorry. He was about to say something, but Lubb interrupted.

Running out of his room at the sound of their screaming, Lubb came prepared with an enormous gun at his hip, aiming it right at Ren. He shouted, "Dom! Are you ok? What's happening? I have a gun! If nothing's wrong though, you'd better tell me, because you need two hands to hold this thing and I'm suddenly very itchy for some reason!"

"Lubb, put that down!" hollered Dom, rushing towards him nervously. "That's an anti-spacecraft gun, you'll shoot a hole through him _and_ the ship!"

Hearing that, Lubb immediately handed the gun off to her as if it were some kind of ticking time bomb. Dom quickly grabbed it and put it back on her gun rack, shaking her head as she did so. Lubb looked at her bashfully and apologized. "I'm sorry," he said, his round cheeks hiding the edges of a frown, "I heard screaming and got scared; screaming is scary. Also I wanted to shoot something. But that's ok, I don't have to. I can shoot something some other time." He scratched himself frantically, rubbing up against the wall to get at his back.

Dom made a face as she watched him grind against the wall like a bear against a tree. She cleared her throat and looked back at Ren, saying, "Anyway, no need to freak, I was just giving the Supreme Leader here a little fashion advice."

Kylo glared at her as the heavy gold brooch hung in his broad, heaving chest, making him bleed. He could feel the blood drip down his front and soak his shirt. Lubb noticed the change of color in the fabric of his tunic and told Dom, "I always thought that you were supposed to stick the pin into your _clothes_ , not your skin! Have I been wearing them wrong this whole time? I never knew fashion could be this dangerous! Do I _want_ to continue wearing pins if I have to risk my life to do it? Have people seen me wearing pins before and thought that I was in a gang? This is such a moral dilemma! I've invested at least 20 minutes of my life in buying pins. And the pins that I have really add to an outfit, as well as help to express my interests and passions. Should I give all that up now just because I'm afraid? I need to face my fears if I ever want to—"

"Lubb!"

"Sorry."

Domino walked back over to Kylo Ren and sighed, pulling out her brooch and wiping the blood off on his shoulder. She clipped it closed and tossed it into her jewelry box. "Ok," she said, pointing to the cockpit, "Lubb, can you take us in please? We're already in the planet's gravitational field."

Ren blinked. He hadn't even noticed their approach he'd been so preoccupied with watching her gamble and getting stabbed. Rattatak was an entirely green world, covered with what appeared to be one endless, swampy jungle, its thick canopy dotted with tiny lakes like spots on a bird's egg. On the edges of the planet where night crept in, no lights could be seen, reaffirming Ren's belief that the planet was abandoned. The only sign that a civilization had ever existed there was the small clearing of land that they were currently speeding towards, cut into the shape of a diamond. It reminded him of the dart that had paralyzed him earlier, holding much of the same dimensions.

Domino put on a pair of angular sunglasses to complete her look, her face becoming a mask of two black triangles with pouting red lips, fashionably stoic and perpetually unimpressed. As the ship made it into the oxygenated zone, Splugorra's men sent up a message from the ground confirming her landing. With her pointy red nail she pressed the button to receive it.

"Greetings, Miss Fett," spoke the voice, obviously belonging to a droid. "We've been expecting you. Do you have the cargo we requested?"

"Of course," she purred, stepping up to the cockpit. She pressed a few keys that allowed the droid to see into the ship, a camera above them switching on with a bright red light. The camera's lense zoomed onto Ren, examining him. Kylo refused to look at the thing.

"A magnificent specimen," praised the droid, "You have done well, madam. Permission to land has been granted. Please navigate to hangar 26."

* * *

Poe Dameron perked up in his seat beside Chewbacca, listening to his headset intently. A news bulletin had just shot across the airwaves telling the entire galaxy that the Supreme Leader of the First Order was dead (for the second time that week). At first, Poe just thought that it was a simple repeat; after all, it's not everyday that a thousand year old dictator kicks the bucket. However, after a few more seconds of listening he realized that they were talking about someone else. They were talking about Kylo Ren.

"Guys, listen to this," Poe exclaimed, switching the audio to speaker mode. As the blurb played over again throughout the Falcon, everyone stopped what they were doing and listened excitedly. Everyone except for Rey and Leia.

Rey got up from her seat at the Djarik table and paused the game she was playing with Finn, the little digital creatures freezing in place. She glanced at Leia before heading towards the cockpit as if to say, _but I didn't feel anything._ Understanding, Leia shook her head passively and looked away, tightening the grip on her cane and stopping the conversation there. Rey frowned and pulled herself into the chair behind Chewbacca, leaning over to ask Poe, "What's all this now?"

"They're saying that Kylo Ren is _dead_ ," said Poe, lingering on the word. With a gleam in his brown eyes Poe asked, "Rey, do you know what this means? It means that there was a coup, an uprising. That's the only way to explain why they would cancel the party so soon; they knew he was a dud and wanted'em gone... Well, either that or he might have... you know," he paused to make a morbid hanging motion with his hands and an indelicate choking sound. Rey made a face at him but he continued, saying, "Uprisings are the first signs of crumbling evil governments. Sure, they might have 40,000 times as many guys as we have, but if there isn't someone there keeping them in line, those numbers don't count for shit."

Chewbacca roared at this information.

Rey narrowed her eyes in thought and took another look at Leia, who was now making her way over with Finn at her side. Once they were all accounted for, Rey told them, "There's a problem with that story. I know this sounds strange, but if Ben had died I would have felt it, I know I would have. The Force is with him just as much as it is with me and Master Skywalker."

At the mention of her brother, Leia chimed in. "When Luke crossed over we felt it. Rey and I both did, as did my son," she muttered, "If Ben died, we would feel that, too." Leia seemed bothered by the idea of someone hurting her boy, but she didn't let it get the best of her, quickly adding, "The Force connects us all."

Poe was obviously confused, but Finn beat him to the punch when he asked, "So you're saying they faked his death?"

"Maybe," said Rey, thinking back on their Force Bond. "I don't know what's become of him, but I know for a fact that he isn't dead. Not yet anyway."

After that, the talk died down. The Millennium Falcon and her cargo of the last remaining Resistance in the galaxy was on its way to another base somewhere in the D'Qar system, and as it steadily made its way to safety, Rey secluded herself in meditation, determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. With her mind, she reached out into the void of space, searching for any sign of her troublesome friend Ben Solo.

* * *

Dozens of creatures gathered around the ship to watch as the mighty Force user Kylo Ren was paraded towards Splugorra Snell's lair, the smoke from their pipes creating a thick cloud of smelly vapors. They clapped when Domino finally emerged, pushing the man in a chair with Lubb following close behind. Splugorra's visitors came in all shapes and sizes, but none of them were human. Rodians and Barabels looked out at them with their cold, reptilian eyes, while Grans and a Vor were busy laughing their heads off, their voices strange and gurgling. Multiple languages were being spoken at once in the hangar, creating a cacophony of nonsensical sounds. Ren looked up at Domino to see if she found it just as bothersome, but the woman showed no sign of emotion whatsoever, her face frozen as they marched on.

The hangar was inside of what appeared to be part of an ancient temple or palace, the walls made up of crumbling stones pierced by tree roots and its' ceiling long vanished, replaced instead by a canopy of shady trees. The trees did their jobs almost too well, for the place was very dark and muggy, the sun blocked by their massive leaves. By the looks of things, this was the top floor, too, a series of steps leading into the shadowy stronghold below. Ren could feel the sweat starting to form on his face, his heavy clothes feeling more and more miserable as time wore on. It must have been 100 degrees, so how was Domino holding it together in that massive fur coat? She stepped out in front of them and crossed her arms coolly, looking for someone.

A droid rolled forward from behind a group of drunk Killiks, its thin metal arms outstretched in welcome. On its torso was a medal, setting it apart from the others that were there. It was obviously close to Splugorra.

"Chee cha ka aka Domino kooka. Aye ga," it said, its voice box rattling and slightly off.

"Just as Splugorra ordered," replied Domino, "The jedi that killed all the others."

Ren's eyes shot to hers defiantly. All of the creatures in the hangar cheered for her, taking even more puffs of smoke from their long pipes. Each one of the beasts glared at him, their curiosity piqued.

"Bah choo eh day laisaber ka?" spoke the droid. The language was foreign to Ren, but he at least knew that it was Huttese. It was spoken in every greasy corner of the galaxy.

"Yes, I have the lightsaber," she smiled, opening up her coat. There it was, tucked in neatly to the lining of her pockets. She took it out and twirled it around in her hand. "It makes for a wonderful steak knife. Not so good for buttering toast though."

"Wait, what?" Kylo muttered. He tried to think back on when he last remembered having his lightsaber. He thought that he had it with him the entire time that they were on the ship; he certainly hadn't felt her take it. He knew for a fact that his paralysis hadn't made him numb, so how could he not have noticed her grabbing it, pulling it, and detaching it from his belt? He felt violated by her light fingers, his lip trembling in disgust. Ren grew furious as he watched her twirl the saber around like a toy. It was a powerful weapon that took him weeks to build and enormous effort to construct, a weapon that was as much a part of him as his arms and legs. He wanted to jump out of his chair and snatch it from her, but no matter how hard he might have tried to squirm his way free, his body wouldn't budge. He growled at her, "What do you think you're doing? Give it back!"

"And miss out on another 20,000 credits? No thanks," she replied, grinning. "I know how much the crystal inside this thing is worth. I might be a bounty hunter, but even I can admit there's more money in things that can't fight back."

"Is money all you think about?" asked Ren, breathless with rage.

Domino looked up thoughtfully, her eyebrows furrowing and lips puckering before she playfully replied, "Wow! Yeah, I guess so!"

Lubb moved beside Kylo and pat his shoulder, his brown curly hair sticking to his forehead with sweat. "It'll be ok," he said, trying to comfort him. "Your lightsaber won't get hurt or anything, it's going in a display case. It'll be in a nice big box that they dust very frequently. Trust me, I know! I used to dust it! Ya know, dusting has a real technique to it, and if you just wipe everything down all willy-nilly then you won't-"

"Lubb!"

"Sorry."

The droid servant rolled forward and took the lightsaber from Dom, stuffing it into a compartment in its torso. Ren watched it disappear and grit his teeth, growing anxious without its presence by his side. His eyes turned to the droid's, two yellow dots in the center of its cylindrical skull. It motioned for them to move down the stairs and into the hideout. "It sa tee-tocky tah meet gee ka Splugorra," it said, rolling towards the entrance.

As the four of them moved further down into the ancient fortress, the smell of whatever the creatures around them were smoking grew more intense, giving Ren a headache and causing Lubb to clamp his nose shut with a tool from his pockets. Everything was hazy, and it didn't help that there was hardly any light. The sun left them behind in the hangar, and from there on out only torches or thin fluorescent bulbs were there to light their path. Mixed between the strange smells of the smoke was that of mustiness, the stones beneath their feet probably placed there thousands of years before. However, as they reached the bottom of the stairs, Ren realized that Splugorra had done some redecorating.

Gorgeous mosaic floors stretched before them, bringing them into what seemed to be the Hutt's main hang. There were creatures everywhere, drinking, smoking, gambling, and towards the end of the room, a band was even playing. The jazzy music almost made everything seem normal. That is, until Kylo Ren made eye-contact with Spulgorra Snell.

An enormous, disgusting thing, Splugorra laid sprawled out over dozens of pillows, smoking from a pipe and producing clouds of smoke so big that it looked as if everyone might choke on the fumes. Hutts were never very pleasant creatures, but this one in particular looked even more hideous than average. His crepey, sweaty skin was tinted a dark brown color, making him look like a pile of mud with a face. A scar ran across the area Kylo would call his chest (he wasn't up to speed on slug anatomy) that looked like a giant 'X', and tattoos covered his short, fat arms. Surrounding him were five or six Twi'lek slave girls, each more beautiful than the last. However, the emptiness in their eyes made it clear to Ren that they weren't enjoying his company.

"Coona tee-tocky malia?" asked Splugorra, his yellow eyes widening as Domino stepped towards him with her bounty. His voice was incredibly deep and booming, alerting the band to stop playing so that everyone could listen.

Domino looked around at the audience of creatures that had gathered there and answered, "We stopped for lunch on the way in, you understand. Sorry for the wait. However, I knew this one wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. Those darts you gave me work wonders. See, he's still as limp as a celegian tentacle!"

Lubb freed him from the ropes and picked up Ren's arm, shaking it around and waving it at Splugorra. Ren glared at the kid as he did so, wishing that he was close enough to head-butt. Splugorra laughed at the display and said, "U kulle jedi rah doe kankee kung. Bargon u noa a-yut."

Dom frowned and said, "Well that's the thing, boss. That slimey general you partnered me with jipped me on my payment. I asked for fifteen and he only gave me five, I couldn't believe it. I even asked nicely!" She grabbed her money chip from the inside of her coat and said, "Illustrious Snell, I know you'll reimburse me the ten I lost, right? Lubb and I can use all the help we can get these days, and we will _never_ doubt your generosity."

Kylo could almost taste the poison on her lips as she lied right through her teeth. He clearly remembered her telling him how much Hux paid had paid her for the hit— fifteen thousand. For someone who didn't like to be called a cheat, she certainly enjoyed cheating. The sicky-sweet smile that stretched across her face as her precious money chip changed hands gave him an idea. Ren saw his chance to get back at her for copping his lightsaber and stabbing him with a brooch. He angled his head to look at Splugorra and said, "She's lying."

At this, the entire room gasped as all of their eyes locked onto Domino's blushing face. Her mask had cracked and suddenly she started to sweat. She giggled awkwardly at Splugorra before flipping around to Kylo Ren and whispering forcefully, " _Shut up! No one asked you!_ "

"Inkabunga?" asked Splugorra, his eyes narrowing.

"W-What? No of course not!" answered Dom, waving her hands around frantically. Her eyes shot instinctively to her money chip, resting in the clamps of a droid nearby. "I would never lie to you, mighty Snell. And you know these First Order freaks can't be trusted to-"

"Da beesga poodoo kaka juju big dept Domino hoopa. Jeeska do sookee koopa fifty towzend moe Haladeen sabacc," he grumbled, obviously displeased.

Ren couldn't really understand what he was saying, but by the terrified look on Dom's face he could tell that she was getting her just desserts. He seemed to be talking about her debts. Ren couldn't help but laugh. Even with sunglasses on it was obvious that Domino wasn't having a very good day. She tried to laugh it off, too, but when Splugorra didn't budge, she quickly collected herself into something that looked like repentance and said, "P-please just take the money, I should have known better than to think you weren't watching. Take the 50,000. Take all of it. I know about my debt... Please, just-"

After the droid ran the chip into its systems and drained it of cash entirely, it's pincers smashed it, sending the thin plastic pieces clattering to the ground. Dom's heart lept into her throat at the sight of it, but before she had time to react she saw something from the corner of her eye. She flipped her head around to see what it was, her black hair spinning across her face. Out of the shadows stepped the man called Haladeen, an enormous smile stretching across his thin face. "You see what happens when you don't play fair?" Haladeen sneered, shuffling a stack of sabacc cards in his hands.

"I didn't cheat!" she screamed, furious and scared. Dom pleaded with Splugorra, her voice trembling as she said, "Splugorra, please! Take my word for it! Believe me, I'm not a cheater!"

Ren felt Lubb grab his shoulder nervously, his brown eyes on the brink of tears. Ren looked at the kid and realized that maybe he'd just gotten _him_ into trouble, too. If something happened to Domino, what would happen to Lubb? He cursed himself at the thought, immediately regretting saying anything to Snell.

"Da beesga coo palyeeya pityee bo Boba Fett tenya kaka hoopa. Kee baatu baatu," announced Splugorra, his wide mouth turning up into what could have been a smile. All of the creatures in the crowd around them started laughing excitedly.

At this, Domino froze, her anger turning into pure terror. "What do you mean you're putting me on display? I'm not famous, I just dress like I am! I-I-I'm not even related to the guy!" She laughed nervously, trying to shake it off.

Haladeen scoffed at her. "Oh please, you're always going on about him! You wear his damn patch on every stitch of clothing that you own! Come on, I'm sure you're wearing it right now, show us!"

"Psh! Are you kidding? I'd never put a patch on a Zendara fur coat, it would ruin the lining and totally throw off the look!" Spat Dom, wrapping the furry item more tightly around herself. "But if we're being serious then let's think logically for a moment. Jango Fett had a million clones of himself, so how likely is it that _my_ grandpa was actually Boba? Please, I might borrow his aesthetic, but come on! I can't believe that you'd buy something like that, Snell, especially about someone who's being digested by your cousin's sarlacc."

Ren rolled his eyes. Was there anything that this woman _didn't_ lie about? Just a few minutes ago she passionately stabbed him with a pin over Boba Fett's legacy. Now she was acting like she just stole his patch? Kylo was annoyed with her, but the more he thought about it the more it made sense. Of course she would deny her heritage to avoid prison. Although she wasn't a very convincing liar, Kylo was beginning to understand her character; she was just another kid who was raised in a crook's galaxy. She understood the rules, but she also knew that her life mattered more than upholding them. Kylo felt his heart waver a bit as his father's face suddenly crossed his mind.

Hold on.

Wait.

There was something else making his heart skip a beat. It was the same sensation he felt when he would talk to...

" _Rey," he whispered._

 _Everything went silent, cutting off the world like the past few hours had all just been a crazy dream. There was no sound but that of Rey's shakey intake of breath before she said, "People are saying that you're dead."_

 _He didn't respond, only looked at her and waited for her to laugh at his predicament._

" _Did... Did someone kidnap you?" she asked, obviously confused by the flimsy rope that was somehow holding a man as strong as he was to a chair. When he didn't respond to that one either she examined him further and observed, "You're shut off from the Force; you can't use it. Why?"_

 _Kylo looked away from the ghost-like vision of Rey and sighed, whispering, "It doesn't matter why. Just know that I'm out. You won't see me around anymore, so go. Go away and don't try to find me again. It's... It's for the best that I disappear. I owe them that much."_

 _Once he'd finished talking, Rey realized that her mouth had been open for the duration of his speech. She quickly shut it and shook her head, perplexed. "Ben, what do you mean? Who is_ them _?"_

 _He let out a single laugh and said exasperatedly, "I don't know. You, my mother, the galaxy... Them. I could address them as Everyone-I've-Wronged, but I think that's a bit too dramatic, even for me."_

 _Rey frowned and ignored his pity party. "So you're just giving up? What's happened to you?"_

 _Kylo was growing tired of her questions and growled, "I realized that I don't give a shit anymore, that's what happened." He glared up at her fiercely and hissed, "Now get out of my face and tell your little friends that the rumors are true. Kylo Ren is dead. You won. Go away."_

"You're not dead yet, dumbass! Snap out of it!"

Domino slapped Kylo across the face, violently waking him out of the Force Bond. Before he even had the chance to groan, Domino had pulled out her blaster and aimed it at Splugorra. Apparently lots of things had gone down in the minute he'd spent with Rey, and the tension that had oppressed him earlier came crashing down on him like a wave. The boy was no longer at his side. Lubb was in the arms of two droid guards, their thin metal arms wrapping around his chubby frame like snakes. The boy looked on him with frightened eyes, a sharp knife held to his throat to keep him from squirming.

"Splugorra, please," Dom pleaded. "Lubb had nothing to do with _my_ mistakes. Let him go, please. He's already served his time under you. Don't punish him for something he didn't do!"

"Totiki malia bon a-yut," grumbled Snell, his massive mouth drenched in drool. Narrowing his horrible eyes, he commanded, "Beena tooky ka."

"No!" Dom screamed, firing her blaster indignantly. It grazed the Hutt's shoulder, sending him into a frantic rage. His fat arms waved around in pain, knocking away the slave girls beside him. All of the creatures at the party backed off, some of them running deeper into the stronghold with cackling delight. All of them seemed to be screaming, sounding more like wild animals than sentients.

At the sight of their boss being harmed, four more guard droids sprung into action, unfolding themselves to expose multiple blade-wielding arms and all lunged at Domino, aiming for her ankles and elbows. Ducking down to build momentum, Domino flipped into the air, kicking away their blades and grabbing Kylo Ren's chair, sending them both toppling to the ground. Kylo let out an _oomf_ at the landing, unable to brace himself for impact due to the paralysis. His body rolled out awkwardly onto his side, limp as a rag doll.

Once Dom's boots hit the floor, she fired at each and every one of the droid's cylindrical heads, watching as they collapsed one at a time into heaping, hemorrhaging piles of parts. Aiming her blaster at the droids that held Lubb, she almost fired before she felt a rifle pointed at the back of her skull.

"Drop the gun, Dom," said the perp, his voice as whiney and pretentious as usual.

" _Norm_ ," answered Domino, breathing hard and realizing it was time to quit. "Of course, the gang's all here."

"I don't know what I hate the most about you, girl," he sighed, "your idiotic sense of heroism or that damn ugly bob." She could sense him pursing his lips his language was so predictable.

Domino slowly turned to face him, dropping her blaster as Norm had ordered. She put her hands up and stifled a laugh. His head had been shaved on the sides, leaving a swirl of lime green hair on top like a puffy, toxic cloud. "Look who's talking! I'm hoping your boyfriend _forced_ you to get that haircut."

"You know I have the face shape to pull it off." he sneered.

"So it _does_ come off? I thought it looked like a toupee."

"Bitch! Do you feel this gun on your forehead or not?"

"I feel it, Norm," she answered, frowning when he pressed the barrel to her temple.

He took the rifle off of her skin and motioned with it for her to turn around and face Splugorra, who was holding his ripped shoulder with a furious expression. There was no chance of getting herself out of this now. Mustering an awkward smile with her bright red lips, Domino let out a nervous laugh and awaited her final judgement.

* * *

 **Greetings, Mortals! Welcome back to "No Good to Me Dead"! How are you liking the story so far? Please let me know by leaving a review! Do you have any complaints? Is there anything that you especially like? Tell me about it! I love to hear back from my readers!**

 **This is a 4 part story with each part named for the colors Black, Red, White and Grey. Be on the look-out for our story's next chapter, White, coming soon to a galaxy near you!**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **-Molly**


	3. WHITE

Domino watched as Kylo Ren was dragged into the glass case beside hers, his gigantic frame shoved rather inelegantly inside. The handlers, tiny Dralls in even tinier green overalls, struggled to hoist him up, and were working together in pairs to slowly shove him into the case. Every case was the same size, only about three feet by three feet square. The glass that enclosed them was thick enough to stop a shot from a blaster and was cold to the touch. For someone of a smaller build, like Domino, the case was just big enough to spread her legs out straight, but for Kylo Ren, his legs had to be bent, his massive feet angled into the corner awkwardly. Still paralyzed from the neck down, Kylo couldn't adjust himself, and was at the mercy of their tiny, furry handlers as to how he would be displayed. They pushed his back to the glass with their gloved paws, propping him up and allowing him to get a better look at the other enclosures. They cursed him in their zippy tongue as they sealed the door shut behind them. He looked like a crumpled piece of paper.

The Zoo was a few levels below Splugorra's main hang; you could see and hear the neverending party above them through the dozens of **white** stone archways that encircled the place. They were at least forty feet below in a courtyard that the sun somehow managed to touch. The thick canopy of trees above them had been cleared thousands of years ago to make room for this palace, allowing the sun to shine on them like a flashlight, and leaving the rest of the place in a smokey darkness. Scattered evenly throughout the enormous, circular space was case after case of people, some alive, some dead, and a large display of their possessions towards the center. To Kylo Ren's left was a dead man, his body dried and emaciated and his mouth left open in a permanent scream. By the looks of the corpse's clothes he was once a senator, a shiny badge pinned to his collar reminding Kylo of the one his mother used to wear. Made a bit uneasy by the sight of him, Kylo turned his head and glanced over at Domino to see how she was handling things.

She wasn't.

The same handlers that had brought them into the Zoo, short little beasts in green overalls like the ones Lubb wore, were now bringing in their things to mount in the shared display case nearby. One of the creatures held Ren's lightsaber, the only possession he'd been able to bring with him, while all the others struggled to carry in a colossal pile of Domino's clothes, ones she had emblazoned with her grandfather's patch. The sight of them touching her stuff lit a fuse in Dom, and soon she was pounding on the glass.

"Hey! _Hey!_ What do you creeps think you're doing? Get your paws off that!" she screamed, sticking her red mouth as close to the air holes in the case as possible. "That's a vintage Bocca Kilani jacket you're manhandling! I paid good money for that! ...Hey, are you even listening!? You're messing up a perfectly good Meelwat handbag! You're ruining the leather!"

All of the other people stuck in their exhibits turned to look at her as her voice grew louder and louder; it had been such a long time since they'd seen someone so spirited, so hopeful and ardent for escape. Kylo Ren watched her squirming around and mumbled, "Domino, they're not just going to stuff your entire closet in there with you. Calm down, there's nothing you can do."

She refused to listen to him and continued banging on the thick glass, the sides of her fists growing numb from the force of it. Suddenly finding herself sobbing at feeling so helpless, she wailed, "That's my stuff! You can't have it! Give it back, it's mine! I... I... I want my fur cOo _o_ OA _T!_ "

" **Shut up!** "

Both Domino and Ren turned to look at who'd shouted at her. An older man in a dark blue cape was leaning against the glass in a case in front of them. A thick, black mustache covered the frown that was drawn across his brown face. Once Kylo laid eyes on him, he recognized the man immediately.

"Lando?" he asked, angling his head as best he could. "Lando Calrissian?"

Domino slid down pathetically into a sitting position, her cheeks wet with tears. Knowing that she had bigger things to worry about than a missing handbag, she muttered, " _Sorry, Mr. Calrissian_ ," and wiped her face with her hands, smearing her eyeliner. She looked over at Kylo wistfully and asked, "Mr. Ren, do you know Mr. Calrissian?"

Although the uneasy look on his face told her that he did, Ren said nothing, the suffocating weight of his past pressing down on him with a dizzying force. Ren felt his heart jolt when Lando's dark eyes rose to meet his. Once a cherished friend and glorified member of the family, Lando no longer made Ren feel safe. Ren had killed his own father, Lando's best friend. That information was as deadly as a sharp knife, one which could now be driven into Kylo's heart to break whatever was left of it in two. Seeing Lando locked in a cage only made the feeling worse. He had no idea that this had happened to him; they'd lost touch a long time ago. Did Lando know about Han? Did he know about what Kylo had done? How long had Lando been here, waiting for this moment? Ren's heart wanted to warm to him, like muscle memory or an old habit, but his brain warned against it.

Finally, Lando broke the uncomfortable silence and said, "Ren? I think you mean _Ben_." His sharp old eyes were locked onto Ben's, unshakeable and unreadable. It was like they were back at the Dejarik table on the Falcon, and Lando was refusing to give up his hand. "We know each other, sure," he said, "We met on the day he was born. I was there at the hospital when they told me his middle name was going to be Calrissian."

Ben cringed, the guilt building up like bile in his throat, stinging and nauseating.

Domino seemed confused. Shuffling on her knees towards the corner of her case that was closest to Lando, she commented, "Oh, no, sir, this is Kylo _Ren_. With an 'R'. He was the Supreme Leader of the First Order; the big boss. I should know; I was the one Splugorra assigned to bring him here."

Ben sighed and gave up the staring contest with Lando, shutting his eyes woefully and feeling his nerves spiral out of control. His cover was blown (if he had any to begin with).

"What, did I say something wrong?" Dom asked at the sight of Ben's pained face.

At this, Lando pulled himself up, standing at his full height. He'd lost a lot of weight, Ben noticed, but he hadn't lost his pokerface. Finally revealing his cards, his face was suddenly flushed with anger. "So it's true," he fumed, looking down on him from on high. "You really did kill Han, didn't you... You killed those students of Luke's, too. Damn it Ben, I-I sent a boy from Cloud City out there to learn with you, and now his mother will never see her son again! All because of you and the stunt you pulled! When I heard about it a few years back I chose not to believe it, but now the truth is staring me right in the face. You're a damn fool. You've got no respect for anyone but yourself- you won't even stand up and address me like a man! Get off your ass and look at me, boy!"

Ben's eyes widened, visions of the confused and frightened little boy he once was flashing in front of his eyes. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know how. He felt like he was going to puke.

"Lando, calm down, he can't move right now!" interrupted Dom, rising to her feet as well. She crossed her arms and informed him that, "I tagged him with a dart earlier today. He's paralyzed from the neck down; it's the only way I could capture him without getting choked by an _invisible hand_ or some crazy shit like that."

Lando finally let up on Ben, glancing at Domino and asking, "So you went after this one, too, huh? You got me first, and then you were just missing Han. You couldn't snag _him_ so you settled for his son, right? Was it for revenge? That seems like your shtick."

"Revenge?" asked Dom, unsure of what he was referencing. "For what?"

Lando smirked. "Ben's father and I are the reason your grandfather ended up in the sarlacc. You've heard of Han Solo, haven't you? The old pirate told that story every chance he got."

Suddenly a light came on for Domino, her eyes widening in realization. Flipping around to face Ben, she exclaimed, "Your dad was Han Solo? Stars, man! Why didn't you let me in on this totally cosmic, crazy, serendipitous info? I mean, we're practically related and I didn't even know! What a coincidence!"

Ben blinked at how seemingly overjoyed she was at meeting the son of her grandfather's killer. What a confusing person. She genuinely seemed like she had no idea that she had simultaneously captured two of the most influential people in the galaxy. However, Ben quickly reminded himself that he'd seen Domino lie at least once before, so was she pulling his leg? He honestly couldn't tell. Ben wanted to respond to her excited exclamation, but Lando spoke up before Ben had the chance, saying, "Ben didn't mention it because he doesn't care about his family, _that's why_. He gave up on them long ago. He never _appreciated_ what he had!"

"I love my family!" Ben shouted, immediately taken aback at the words that left his mouth. He didn't know where this strength of feeling was coming from, but there was no stopping it now. He continued, saying, "I loved my mother and father. I loved my uncle, too. But... But _they_ were the ones that gave up on _me_. They were afraid of me."

The old man pounded his fist to the glass, obviously furious. "So is that why you killed'em?" he asked, "That's why you killed Han? Because you loved him so much, or because you wanted to give your family a _reason_ to fear you?"

Ben shook his head to the best of his ability. "N-no, I," he started, trying to remember his convictions. Unable to contain himself any more under the pressure of Lando's gaze, he cried, "I killed him because I was told to. Snoke, he was the one... he made me do it to prove my loyalty and I... I just did it, I-I don't know why I... _I don't know_..."

"You don't _know?_ " shouted Lando, mustache pushed to his nose as he bared his teeth. He took a step back and ran a hand over his head, letting out a long sigh. Trying to calm down, he decided that the kid wasn't worth the effort and backed off, lowering his voice when he said, "You're no son of Han's. You're no one's boy. You're a damn freak."

And there it was.

The knife plunged into Ben with a might he'd never felt before.

Feeling his paralyzed body slowly sliding down the cold glass wall, he felt as though he was drowning; drowning in all of the words that had been said to him over the years, which had now all been proven entirely right. He _was_ a freak. He _was_ a monster. Cold, unfeeling tears streaked his red face as he thought of the wonderful family he'd destroyed for sport, of the countless lives he'd ended to gain what- power? But what had that power gotten him? Absolutely fucking nothing. Embarrassed, furious, and mournful, all of Ben's emotions culminated within him until finally he let out a deep, blood-curdling yell, like a battle cry for defeat. It was all he could do. He couldn't even make a fist. All he had now was his voice, so he used it. Loud.

Domino watched him from her case, her heart trembling for him. She'd never seen someone so crushed before, so full of self-hatred. She placed her palms against the glass, wishing that she could at least help him sit up. Finally, he stopped his scream. He was panting into his chest, his face sweaty with bits of his black hair clinging to it wildly. After a few moments of silence and when Domino understood that Lando had nothing else to say to him, Dom softly cleared her throat and scooted over towards his side of the glass. She started softly, "Ben? S-so your name's Ben?"

Ben shut his eyes, annoyed at the question. Still panting he replied, "Yes. My name is Ben... _Fuck_."

"So you just-"

"Don't talk to me right now, Domino."

A funny realization suddenly came over Dom, as well as a smile that she tried to hide.

"Wait. So you just changed one letter in your name?" she asked, her face contorted in amused confusion, "You just changed the B to an R and then decided that it sounded cooler?"

Rolling his eyes, he could feel a heat building up inside him, whether it was from rage or embarrassment, though, he couldn't tell. Red-faced, Ben looked at her as best he could from his crumpled position, refusing to egg her on any further.

Seeing how flustered he was, she really did try to contain her laughter, but after a few giggling seconds she belted out a massive chuckle, leaning into the glass to support herself as she did so. Trying to talk through her incessant laughter, she managed, "I-I'm sorry... Don't mind me, I-I... I'm not laughing at you, I promise, I, um...," she stopped to take in a violent gust of breath, laughing so hard that it was difficult to get any air, and through tears said, " _Kylo_... Kylo BEN! M-Master of-of-of allll eeevilll! KYLO _BEN!_ That's so funny! And so SAD! ...Oh... Oh, man, that's good."

"Shut up, Domino!" growled Ben, gritting his teeth. As she continued to laugh at him, he could feel himself firing up, so much so that condensation began to steam up the glass beside him. He was furious.

Hearing him yell at her only made her laugh more. Her eyes were clamped shut from the force of it, and she buckled over and grabbed her gut, feeling it constrict from her lack of breath. "I... I'm sorry, I... It's just all so funny!"

Her laughter was the final straw for him. Ben couldn't take it anymore. First he ridiculously and stupidly killed his dad, then he blew it with the scavenger girl. Next was the paralysis, and after that came the betrayal from that dumb orange haired prick. Then he was shoved in a case to be looked at and judged forever by his uncle and whatever else kind of fat, drug dealing slug that came along. Now he was being laughed at by a woman with tauntingly red lips. He had had enough.

" **I said shut up!** " he screamed, sitting up right and banging his fist on the glass.

The sound of it startled Domino.

Looking at him through her teary eyes, she quickly made the connection that, "You moved! Ren -sorry- _Ben_ , you moved!"

Ben's eyes widened and he looked at his fist, letting out a shaking breath when he saw that when he told his fingers to move, they moved. He tried it with his other hand, pulling it up in front of his eyes and flexing it. A wave of relief washed over him as the paralysis slowly broke. Like he was being defrosted, he could sense the rest of his body steadily waking up again. He could have cried if the other two weren't there to watch. Proudly, he lined his back up against the wall and smiled. After a few seconds, he tried to stand, but Dom quickly scolded him.

"Hey, don't do that! Sit down," she whispered, insistent, "if they know you can move they'll zap you again with another one of those darts."

"Oh," muttered Ben, sliding back down the glass and checking to see if any of the overall-wearing-furballs had noticed. They hadn't. As he sat there, he wondered if his connection to the force had been restored like his movement had. He looked around for something to use it on, finally settling on the pair of earrings that Domino was wearing, the ones shaped like dice. Lifting his finger ever so slightly, he concentrated on them, and when one of them started to move, he grinned. The left earring spun out of her ear and floated in front of her eyes.

"H-hey!" chirped Dom, grabbing it out of the air. Admittedly impressed by the action, she beamed at him, but quickly reminded him of what she'd said about laying low. As she put the earring back on, though, she suddenly had an incredible thought. "Wait! My earrings! Geez, how could I forget! I can contact Lubb with these! Oh, poor Lubb, where are you?"

Ben stared at her blankly. "What do you mean? Do you have a transmitter in those things?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed, pressing snake eyes on the dice. The tiny buttons turned red. "Lubb made them for my birthday last year. He's such a good kid. I really should pay him more."

At this, even Lando snapped out of his funk. The old man looked over at them curiously and asked, "You think he'll pick up? I thought that kid came from the garage here. If they've taken him back, our furry friends have probably confiscated his stuff by now."

"I don't know, but it's worth a shot," answered Dom, watching the dice continue to flash as they waited for the other line to pick up. "Lubb is such a hoarder that it's kind of hard to find anything, even if it's on his person. One time I found an entire screwdriver stuffed inside of a candybar in his room. I mean, I don't know why he would ruin a perfectly good chocolate bar by sticking a- oh hey, Lubb! Can you hear me!?"

The little red lights flashed one last time on the dice, securing the call. At the other end came a loud whisper. "Yes," he said, "it's me, over."

Domino's face lit up in relief. "Oh, thank the creator you're safe. Are you ok?"

"Yes, over. I'm fine, over. How are you? Over."

"Lubb, you don't have to say over after every sentence, ok? In fact, you don't have to say over at all. I really don't know why you're doing that, you know this thing is a two way." replied Dom, shaking her head. "Anyway, Ben and I are fine. We've been put on display, but we're alright."

"Who's Ben?" asked Lubb. "I thought his name was _Ren_."

"Long story," she answered, glancing over at Ben. "Say, Lubb. We were wondering if you could get us out of here. Are you busy?"

"I'm back in the garage," he said, his whispers gritty on the mic, "I'd forgotten how much this place smells like bantha poop and gasoline. They have me working on one of Splugorra's game tables right now; he's having a tournament tomorrow to celebrate your capture."

Dom narrowed her eyes and hissed, "That trash, of course he is. And without me, too. Just think of the money that'll be changing hands that night." With all the talk of cash, a familiar, greedy gleam took over her face, painting it with a wistful smile. "How much is the big blind? Do you know?"

Ben watched her, sure that her antics were going somewhere. Although she might be unpredictable, he knew for a fact that she could never say no to a game.

Lubb paused for a second before saying, "The hardware says 2,000,000 credits, but you know Splugorra; he loves to gamble."

Dom's eyes practically glazed over at the number. " _2,000,000 credits?_ What game are they playing?"

"Sabacc," Lubb said, quickly asking, "Dom, what are you planning? Should I be nervous? Wait, I'm already nervous. Oh no. What's happening?"

Both Lando and Ben were looking at her intently, wondering what exactly she was planning to do. Suddenly, the girl rose to her feet determinedly, clutching the earrings in her hand.

"I'm going to play Sabacc with Splugorra Snell," she muttered, thinking the plan over in her head.

" _What?_ " asked Ben, "You have nothing to wager!"

"I'll meet the blind with our lives," she said, her black eyes locking onto his fiercely. "If I win, we walk free, but if we lose, we all die. Sound fun?"

Ben felt a chill wash over him at the prospect of them betting their lives on a sabacc game. It was something his father would do. Pushing the thought out of his head and trying to seem responsible, he asked, "What's this _we_ business?"

"Yeah," joined Lando, agreeing with Ben, "I might like a friendly game here and there, but I don't think you know what you're getting into. Quit now while you're ahead."

"And do what, sit here and rot?" she spat, placing a hand on the glass, "You boys can hang around if you want, but I'm getting the hell out of this case and I'm taking Lubb with me. I've got a life to live and lots of things to see. So do you." Leaning in, she clenched her fists and said with intense fervor, "Play with the cards you're dealt, boys. Use what you have to get what you want."

The two men looked at each other as they sat in their cages, unable to disagree with the red lipped bounty hunter no matter how badly they might have wanted to. Suddenly, a tingling, nervous sensation the likes of which he hadn't felt in years filled Ben's system. It was time to gamble. Now he just needed a strong hand.

* * *

Rey had been trying to contact Ben for a good three hours, reaching out with the force every way she knew how. She had obviously done something to contact him the first time, but she couldn't figure out how to recreate the connection. After sitting in the classic meditation pose, breathing in and out, and clearing her mind, she got nothing. Frustrated, she rose from her seat in the Falcon's broken bottom cockpit and climbed up the ladder to rejoin the rest of the group. Her brows furrowed, she sat down beside Ben's mother, seeking guidance from the wisdom she seemed to radiate. The look on Rey's face explained it all.

"He wouldn't pick up, huh?" asked Leia, frowning.

"No," Rey sighed, "But I swear to you, his situation seemed desperate. He was tied up in a chair. He couldn't move his body, like he was paralyzed or something. They really have overthrown him; he's not aboard his ship, and I could smell a strange odor in his surroundings, like Pryodase pipes. A lot of the junkers back home would smoke that stuff all day."

Leia took an interest in the word. "Pryodase?" she asked. "Now _that_ brings back memories. During my time in the senate I passed a bill banning the drug in republic territory."

Rey smiled at her as she reminisced, impressed by the idea of any woman in an area of such power.

Noticing her smile, Leia continued, saying, "We found out that it all comes from one facility on some desolate rock in the unknown regions. It's highly addictive and in short supply, so people all over the galaxy are desperate to get their hands on it. It makes people crazy, driving some people to sell their organs to afford the drug. I'll never forget those years we spent fighting it; all those children we saved. That was some of the best legislation I ever passed."

Rey narrowed her eyes, her intuition telling her that she should be looking into this facility. "Do you remember which planet was producing the Pryodase? Maybe they've taken Ben there _because_ it's so desolate."

Leia chuckled to herself and pulled up her sleeve, revealing a thin bracelet with what looked like a tracking device attached to it. "Trust me, kiddo, if he's there, we'll know. I had a tracer chip placed on the back of his neck before he went off to train. It was done when he was asleep so that he wouldn't take it out, the scoundrel. I've been following his every move for the better part of 7 years and he doesn't suspect a thing."

"Brilliant!" exclaimed Rey, rising to her feet.

Leia stood, too, with the help of her cane. Smiling, she explained, "A mother worries about her son, you know, even when he's gone and made a mess of things."

Rey was about to say something, but before she had the chance the ship's alert sirens went off, beeping and blaring in full force just as a piece of the ship was blown into space. Steam shot out of the structural vents, and everyone quickly grabbed a hold of something as the Falcon shimmied and shook from the blast. Rey wrapped her arms around Leia protectively until the ship stabilized.

"Now what?" asked Leia in a frustrated shout, hobbling her way over to the cockpit with Rey in tow.

"That sounded like the bottom turret," exclaimed Rey nervously, ducking to avoid a cloud of steam. "I think someone shot it off!"

When the two women stepped into the cockpit, Poe repeated that exact same thing to her. "The bottom turret just got blown off! I've put security measures in place, though, so no one should have gotten sucked out." His bright brown eyes shifted and searched carefully over the dash, looking for whoever was attacking them. Once he realized what was happening, he shut his eyes regretfully and said, "The First Order. They've found us."

"Seriously? You must be joking!" Rey blurted, watching the familiar blue triangles appear on radar.

" _Oh, we're very serious, I'm afraid."_

Everyone froze.

A voice came through the transmitter, thin and arrogant. Chewie roared in retaliation and almost closed the channel, but Poe stopped him. Poe's eyes widened at the familiar sound of General Hux, the same man whose ship he'd annihilated not three days prior. Taking initiative, Poe opened up the channel and replied, "General Hux! It's a good thing you rang, buddy; looks like there's been a little accident. I hope you've got insurance!"

Hux could be heard laughing on the other end, but he soon quit. Sneering, Hux echoed, "Insurance? More like _assurance_. Assurance that I'll _beat_ you and your remaining Resistance _cronies_ into a dusty oblivion!"

As the tension within the cockpit grew and Hux continued his evil monologue, Leia gripped Ben's tracking bracelet to her chest and whispered to Rey, "We might be paying my son a visit sooner than we imagined." She pointed to the map glowing in the corner and said, "His signal is coming from a planet called Rattatak, and by the looks of things I think that's it right over there."

Rey looked up through the hexagonal windows of the cockpit at the small, green planet floating in the blackness of space. Amazed, Rey could have sworn that she felt Ben's presence there, small and distant as it was. Turning to Leia, she whispered in return, "What a coincidence."

* * *

Wherever Splugorra went, his whole babbling entourage went with him, falling over each other and their Pryodase pipes like a cackling, wild horde. As four hefty droids carried the enormous Hutt down the stairs and towards the zoo, the other creatures began to climb down as well, excited to more thoroughly examine Splugorra's new acquisitions. However, the curious crowd had no idea just how excited _Domino_ was to see _them_. She sat in her cage, legs crossed and smiling expectantly.

Ben still couldn't believe that she would be willing to risk her own life so flippantly. Apparently, in the stages of grief, Domino had skipped denial and anger entirely. Wasn't the bartering stage something that came _at least_ a few hours after being locked in a cage? Some of these people had been imprisoned for years; would any of _them_ be so eager to give this crazy gambling thing a try? Then again, for as long as he'd known her, Domino had always seemed ready to make a deal. Ben resigned himself to his corner and gave up on trying to figure her out.

Across from them, Lando was standing, leaning on the wall of his case with his typical swagger. He was staring intently at Domino, and had been ever since she'd decided to strip down to her underwear in front of everyone (yet again). Ben almost grinned at the old man; after all these years he was still a skirt chaser. Lando shook his head and asked the half naked woman, "Was flashing your bloomers part of the plan? Or does it state somewhere in your bounty hunter's code to take your clothes off every twenty minutes?"

Dom smirked at his snide remark but refused to take her eyes off of Splugorra's caravan. "Yes and no," she answered, " _Yes_ , because I know Splugorra can't resist hot humanoid girls like me _, tee hee_ , and _no_ , because this case is _making_ me hot whether I want to be or not." She started fanning herself with her hand. "You jerks are lucky that your cases aren't in the sun. I can feel myself starting to sizzle in here! This can't be good for my skin."

She stood up, stretching out her skimpy black dress and pressing it against the glass in an attempt to provide a little shade. She shoved the skirt into the thin gap that made up one of her air holes, making her own curtain out of a dress worth more than a speeder. As she stuffed it in, Ben looked at the massive bruise on her back, growing ever more purple by the minute. Against her pale skin it was a massive contrast, and for the first time in a long time Ben was starting to feel bad for roughhousing. Maybe it was the guilt, he didn't know, but something made him say, "I'm sorry that I hurt you, Dom."

"Hmm?" she sounded, flipping around once she'd finished wrangling her curtain.

"I said I'm sorry. I know that you were literally paid to kidnap me," muttered Ben, "but now that we're stuck here together I might as well apologize... I guess."

Crossing her arms, Domino let out a single laugh. " _What?_ Why are you saying sorry?"

Ben shut his eyes, tired of trying to explain himself. Sighing, he begrudgingly grumbled, "Because... I like you. You're... _nice_. You're interesting. I guess that, really, out of all the people in the galaxy I could've been locked up with, you're one of the better options."

"I am?" she asked, slightly taken aback.

Ben narrowed his eyes. "Yes. I can tolerate you. You're tolerable."

Domino tilted her head and smiled, small at first, then big and wide. After a second she repeated, "You think I'm tolerable?"

Noticing how she looked like she was on the verge of tears, Ben nodded his head, but didn't say anything else. At this, Domino laughed some more and wiped the wetness from her eyes, careful not to ruin whatever makeup was left on her face. She exclaimed, "Stars, now that I think about it, no one's ever really told me something like that before! I'm flattered!" Trying to downplay how secretly happy she was, Dom said, " _Shucks!_ You're pretty tolerable yourself, Ben. And since we're on the subject, _I'm_ sorry that I hit you with a paper weight and tased you and strangled you and paralyzed you and tied you to a chair! Oh, and I'm sorry for slapping you... and for flipping you out in the floor... and for stealing your lightsaber... and for risking your life in a card game... and for force feeding you nerf nuggets... Ok, now that I think about it that is an _unfair_ amount of stuff _that I did to you_ **WOW**. But um, we're besties now, right?"

"Don't push it," spat Ben.

At that moment, Splugorra's caravan had made it to the garden floor, marching straight towards Ben and Dom. Striking a pose, Domino flipped around, kicked out a leg, and started to wave at them, her other hand resting on her hip flirtatiously. With a beaming smile she called, " _Yoohoo~!_ Almighty slug! Come here, _big boy!_ "

Ben scrunched up his face in disgust at her calling Splugorra Snell a "big boy", but he understood her methods. As the giant thing left his sedan chair and began slinking over to their cages, he could start to smell the stench of his spit and slobber, ever constant at the corners of his mouth. All of the other creatures that had traveled with him began crowding around their cases, and suddenly, Ben felt rather cramped. The horrendous smell mixed with their strange hoops and hollers made him wish that he was literally anywhere else.

After all of the members of his party had gathered around for a good view, Splugorra opened his mouth and asked, "Tee taki malia, Domino hoopa? Ah ha ha ha." His deep, malicious laughter echoed throughout the Zoo. As he did so, Ben could see some of the other people in the cages surrounding them shudder at the sound of it.

"A little buzzard told me that you're throwing a party for me and the Supreme Beater," replied Dom, crossing her arms, "But I don't see how that's going to fly if the guests of honor aren't invited."

Splugorra narrowed his eyes, obviously wondering how she knew about his tournament. "Banjooka tu lama?" he asked.

"Oh, you know me, Snell," she sighed, looking at her nails, "I can sniff out a pile of money from 10 parsecs away. Now why don't you let me and my friends here in on your little game?"

At this, Snell laughed once more, his guttural chuckle signalling for all the other creatures to start laughing, too. Suddenly, Norm, the green haired bounty hunter from earlier, stepped into view from behind the caravan, only he wasn't laughing. Before Snell could respond to Domino's request, Norm jumped in, saying, "You never know when to quit, do you? Give up, Dom! You've been bested, yet again, by moi. Now get a grip, girl. You are quite literally in a corner. You are in a box full of corners."

"Oh, who asked you, Norm, ya big green choobie sack!? I'm addressing Splugorra!" spat Dom.

Norm's eyes went wide, as did his mouth, until finally he hissed, "Oh, you did _not_ just call me pair of testacles. How old are we, sweetie? Six?"

Dom frowned in fake concern. She said, "Norm, I knew the dementia was getting bad but, really? You can't remember how old you are? I think you need to see someone about this."

"You think you're so smart, don't you?" Norm jibed.

Domino smiled slyly. "Of course I do. Because I know that I beat the galaxy's best sabacc player at his own game and that I could _easily_ do it again."

At that moment, something came over Norm, and from where Ben was sitting it looked an awful lot like rage. However, it wasn't the violent kind; it had been there for months or even years, festering like an open wound. It was a quiet rage, and the only noise escaping it was that of Norm's gloves as he made a tight, balled fist. Cracking a smile, Norm finally responded to Domino, but turned his head to face Splugorra. Looking him in the eye he said, "Maybe she should be invited to the party, after all. You and I can show her what it means to be humiliated."

Splugorra looked at him for a moment in contemplation, but shook his head. Pointing to her case, he insisted, "Bo. Da beesga Domino coo paliya."

Ben watched nervously as Domino quickly interrupted. Their chances were about to slip away.

"My friends and I want a seat at your tournament, Snell," explained Dom through the glass, "We wager our lives to meet the big blind. If the smuggler's code is still what it was a few years ago then a human life, including organs, spinal fluid, and bone marrow, is worth a little over 2 million credits. All of us -Me, Ben, and Lando- we want to bet with the credit we have on those grounds."

Lando and Ben could feel their guts churn at the prospect of being picked apart and sold for parts, but their gaze was steely and determined. They knew that this was the only way out of here. Splugorra glanced over at them and they both nodded in agreement, accepting the terms. Seeing this, all of the creatures began chanting in their nervous excitement. They'd never seen a human on display act so boldly before.

Norm, eager to play Domino again, turned to Snell once more and said, "And if that's not enough for you, then I'll give them the money to play. I'll win it all back, anyway. I just want to see all their faces when they realize that you should never put your trust in Domino Fett."

Splugorra looked at the intensity that racked Norm and grinned. With the single nod of his head, Snell obliged him. The creatures cheered; the tournament was on.

* * *

 **Hi, everyone! Thanks for checking back on my story! This is the third out of four chapters, the last one being Grey, which will be coming out very soon! I decided to change the amount of chapters to four because if I hadn't, this chapter would be at least 14,000 words long! Ew! So, be expecting the fourth and final installment to my little tale very shortly! To all my readers out there, thanks so much for the follows and favorites! PLEASE LEAVE ME A REVIEW! I so look forward to hearing back from my readers, and I'm in desperate need of an honest opinion! I want to hear from all of you! How are you liking it so far? What are you expecting in the next chapter?**

 **Anyway, thank you for your continued support! Love ya!**

 **\- Molly**


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